Casio EX-ZR700 and EX-ZR400 Announced

2nd February 2013By dcnadmin

Casio Japan has announced two new 16-megapixel High-Speed Exilim line of digital compact cameras. The Casio Exilim EX-ZR700 comes equipped with a 25-450mm equivalent lens, a 3-inch, 920,000-dot LCD monitor. The Exilim EX-ZR400 has a 24-300mm equivalent zoom lens and a powerful battery rated for 515 exposures on a single charge.

TOKYO, January 29, 2013 – Casio Computer Co., Ltd., today announced the release of two new models in the High Speed EXILIM line of digital cameras. The EX-ZR700 is equipped with a wide-angle 25 mm,*¹ 18x optical zoom lens, while the EX-ZR400 offers long battery life enabling it to capture about 515 photos*² on a single full charge, the most of any camera in the line. High Speed EXILIM cameras offer popular responsive photo-taking features such as fast start-up, high-speed auto focus, and capture intervals of a fraction of a second.

*1 When converted to 35mm film format
*2 CIPA standard compliant

With the aim of providing digital cameras that enable people to capture fleeting moments with beautiful images, Casio has been pursuing the full potential of the compact digital camera using its original high-speed technologies. This effort is based on the company’s “Triple Zero” development objective, which seeks to minimize and eliminate shutter lag, out-of-focus shots, and image blurring due to camera shake.

With the adoption of the latest EXILIM Engine HS Ver. 3, the two new models combine responsive operation and high-speed burst shooting. A new Triple Shot function allows the user to responsively capture three successive images with a single press of the shutter, while a new inset display enables the user to review shots shown in part of the LCD while taking photos. Thanks to these new features, even camera novices can reliably capture moments as they intended, including the fleeting expressions of a child.

Equipped with a wide-angle 25 mm, 18x optical zoom lens, the compact EX-ZR700 offers greatly enhanced image stabilization thanks to the adoption of lens shift image stabilization and technology for combining high-speed burst images (in High-Speed Anti Shake mode). Even in situations where it is necessary to shoot from a distance, such as recitals and sporting events, users can deftly capture their children’s big moments without any image blur. Captured photos also look beautiful on the camera’s high-resolution 3.0-inch 920K LCD.

Meanwhile, the new EX-ZR400 offers the longest battery life in this series, enabling the capture of about 515 images on a single charge. Even on family trips, where photo opportunities abound, users can forget about the battery level and focus on capturing their children’s smiles.

Both new models come with Premium AUTO pro, which automatically combines images taken with high-speed burst shooting according to the shooting conditions, to dramatically improve final image quality in challenging situations. They have shooting functions that fully control focus, as well. These include All-In-Focus Macro, which can capture an entire scene in focus from the near foreground to the distant background, and Blurred Background, which yields impressive shots that look like they were taken with an SLR camera. Without the need for interchangeable lenses or difficult settings, users can take fun, beautiful shots with ease.

Main Features of the EX-ZR700 / EX-ZR400

Powered by the new EXILIM Engine HS Ver. 3

The new cameras are equipped with EXILIM Engine HS Ver. 3 driven by a dual-CPU, two parallel image processors, a reconfigurable processor and a vector graphics core. The reconfigurable processor delivers functional and performance flexibility plus high-speed processing based on the latest technologies from Casio, while the vector graphics core smoothly produces two-dimensional images. In addition to high-speed shooting response,*³ the new models feature an intuitive display screen that is easy to view, thanks to its high-quality graphic user interface.

*3 EX-ZR700: Start-up time of 1.4 seconds, high-speed auto focus time of 0.18 seconds, shutter response of only 0.016 seconds, and a capture interval of as short as 0.26 seconds

EX-ZR400: Start-up time of 0.99 seconds, high-speed auto focus time of 0.14 seconds, shutter response of only 0.015 seconds, and a capture interval of as short as 0.26 seconds

Above times are CIPA standard compliant

Compact body with high-quality high-power zoom

The EX-ZR700 is equipped with a wide-angle 25 mm, 18x optical zoom lens. The zoom maintains super resolution image quality to a maximum zoom of 36x, thanks to Multi Frame SR Zoom technology. Alternatively, the EX-ZR400 is equipped with a wide-angle 24 mm, 12.5x optical zoom lens, enabling zoom to be extended up to 25x with Multi Frame SR Zoom.

High-Speed Anti Shake to control noise and blur even when the camera is held in the hand by combining optical design and high-speed burst images (EX-ZR700)

Casio has employed an optical lens that achieves stabilization equivalent to approximately 2 stops slower*4 in terms of shutter speed. Bringing this effect together with combined high-speed burst images results in image stabilization equivalent to about 5 stops slower*5 in terms of shutter speed. This allows users to minimize blur while holding the camera to take pictures, which can easily result in camera shake, even for shots of night scenes and when zooming. (Results may vary depending on the shooting environment and camera settings). In addition, the EX-ZR700 employs a lens-shift optical lens, which further reduces image blur on the LCD screen when recording movies or holding the camera.

*4 CIPA standard (340mm when converted to 35 mm film format).
*5 Based on a Casio survey. In High-Speed Anti Shake mode.

Triple Shot with almost no shutter lag helps when the subject moves faster than the photographer’s reflexes The new cameras feature Triple Shot, which combines high-speed burst shooting with high-speed response for worry-free photography. The feature not only takes an image when the shutter button is pressed, but also captures images immediately before and after. As a result, Triple Shot enables users to capture decisive moments with quickly moving subjects such as children and pets.

Inset display for reviewing shots on part of the LCD screen while taking photos The new models also feature an inset display on part of the LCD screen to show images just taken. This feature is convenient for photographing children because it allows users to check each shot, while responsively taking more pictures. Users can select from two different inset display screens.

AF-CS keeps moving subjects in focus even while continuously shooting Casio has accelerated the frame rate in the auto focus (AF) mode and optimized the camera’s lens drive control, image sensor control and AF algorithm for parallel processing of AF operations and high-speed continuous shooting. Built into the EX-ZR700, this makes it possible to achieve AF-CS up to 30 frames and as fast as five frames-per-second, which makes it possible to take clear photos of moving subjects such as children and pets.

All-In-Focus Macro and Blurred Background deliver total focus control with high-speed continuous shooting Both new models come with All-In-Focus Macro, which selects only in-focus areas from continuously shot images at different focus settings to produce a composite image. This achieves photos with every area coming out in focus, from foreground subjects to far-away backgrounds, which are hard to produce using a conventional camera. Also, Casio has employed its high-speed continuous shoot technologies to create Blurred Background, an original technique for processing the background scene of a shot like the soft blur effect attainable using a single-lens reflex camera, thereby accentuating the subject of the photo. Users can select from three different processing levels of blur effects to set the background focus just as they wish.

Premium AUTO pro function produces beautiful photos with just a press of the shutter button The Premium AUTO pro function automatically analyzes the shooting scene to choose the best settings and perform image processing. Built into both models, it automatically combines images from high-speed burst shooting according to shooting conditions to create gorgeous photos. Users can easily take sophisticated photos at the press of the shutter button, thanks to the automatic activation of functions such as HDR technology, which combines photos of differing exposures to handle high-contrast conditions, as well as High Speed Night Scene mode for night shots and High Speed Anti Shake for high-power zoom shooting, both of which combine highly sensitive, continuously shot images, taken with camera shake kept at a minimum, to reduce noise in the resulting image. For movies, the Premium AUTO Movie function automatically analyzes the scene to choose the best settings.

HDR technology faithfully reproduces images as they really appear, avoiding under- or over-exposure In both models, the HDR technology developed by Casio allows each press of the shutter button to take several shots at different exposures and instantly combines them into a single image with a high dynamic range. This minimizes over exposed or under exposed areas in the image, creating a photo that captures all the rich tonal gradation of the scene just as it appears in real life.

HS Night Shot eliminates camera shake even in dark settings With HS Night Shot, both new models detect shooting conditions and conduct high-speed burst shooting of numerous frames determined automatically with a level of light sensitivity as high as ISO 25600. High-precision positioning alignment technology suppresses any low-frequency camera shake that may not be completely eliminated by the optical Anti Shake correction function. The company’s latest image-processing technology also completely removes low-frequency color noise, which has typically been very difficult for cameras to eliminate. These technologies work together to produce beautiful photos with minimal blur, even in low-light conditions.

HDR-ART for creating artistic photos; freedom to create artistic images with ART Shot Users of both new models can create artistic photos using the HDR-ART function, which combines continuous shots with differing exposures while performing advanced analysis to locally change the intensity of contrast and color saturation. Users can now choose from a total of five different processing levels of art effects to enjoy creating more freely expressive images. Among the five, two effect levels employ state-of-the-art advanced tone mapping technology to produce impressive tonal gradation for more dynamic photos. Additionally, ART Shot offers eight different filters for creating the artistic photos of the user’s preference: toy camera, soft focus, light tone, pop art, sepia, monochrome, miniature and fisheye. Users can select from three different color and processing levels for each filter (select an area from six patterns for miniature), and can view the effect on the display and adjust the result prior to actually taking a picture. Even better, all of these filters can be used for shooting movies, too. The HDR-ART function simultaneously saves both the HDR-ART image and the standard photo with a single press of the shutter button.

Scenes come alive in their full expansiveness with the Wide Shot function Both cameras can combine continuous shots taken with high-speed continuous shooting when the user is moving the camera, enabling powerful super-wide-angle shots. With the EX-ZR700, users can select wide-angle shooting modes equivalent to 15 mm or 19 mm. The EX-ZR400 offers a choice of wide-angle shooting modes equivalent to 14 mm or 18 mm.

Slide Panorama captures 360-degree panoramic images The Slide Panorama function detects moving subjects and faces and adjusts them appropriately as the camera is moved, allowing users of both models to create more natural-looking panoramic images just by panning the camera across a scene.

Mode dial for rapid access to shooting modes Both cameras are fitted with a mode dial that lets users quickly choose from several shooting modes.

Works with Eye-Fi™/FlashAir™ for wireless connection to computers and smartphones Both cameras are compatible with Eye-Fi™/FlashAir™, making it possible to wirelessly send photos and movies to a computer or smartphone.

High-resolution 3.0-inch 920K LCD (EX-ZR700)

Long battery life delivers about 515 photos on a single charge (EX-ZR400)
Thanks to the original power-saving technology and algorithm optimization created by Casio, the EX-ZR400 offers long battery life enabling roughly 515 images to be taken on a single charge. This performance takes the worry out of extended picture taking, especially on a trip.